Business Blogging Part 4: How to Increase Interaction with the Readers of Your Craft Business Blog

Engaging with your readers is essential for maintaining views and interest in your business blog. Even if you have a fair amount of followers the goal should always be to gain more visitors while providing interesting content.

Once you’ve decided what to write about and worked on your blog’s style and “look,” start to think about ways to improve reader interaction. Let’s look at six elements that can help you achieve a successful blog following:

Write an Intro

A little blurb at the top of your home page will give readers a quick glimpse of your blog’s focus. This is your first chance to capture their attention when they click on your blog, so it’s important to clearly describe your experience and purpose using plenty of keywords. An introduction with good keywords will also improve your SEO (Search Engine Optimization), which helps your blog be found in online searches. The more people who can find your blog, the more readers you will have over time.

Ask Questions

Posing questions for your readers to answer is another way to increase engagement with your blog. They can be theoretical questions to stimulate conversation or concrete questions that have a definite answer. Go with whatever feels natural for your blog as long as you’re getting readers to think about their handmade business. Reading (and replying to) these answers in the comment section can help you strengthen your relationship with your followers, leading to a more devoted audience in the future.

Offer Giveaways

Running contests and giveaways on your blog will definitely get you more visitors. Everyone loves winning cool stuff, and you can even make the prize one of your handmade items! Or you can collaborate with a fellow blogger or artist for a larger impact.

Keep the contest exciting and be sure to promote it widely. You can encourage new clicks to your blog by marketing the contest on social media (more on that later). Some bloggers run giveaways that require entrants to share the post or tag their friends, which can also bring more interest. Comment-based entries will also increase readership, especially if they have to respond to a question or action in your post. Once you’ve picked a winner you can announce it on the blog, thank those who entered, and tease when you’ll be running another one in the future.

Add New Posts Often

Frequently adding new blog posts will keep your readers coming back to see your latest content. If you rarely update your site they might forget about your online presence and start following different bloggers. Create a schedule for posting (that only you will see) so you can space out the topics and plan for each season. This way you won’t become overwhelmed or have too much overlap in subject matter.

Read and Reply to Comments

As I mentioned earlier, reading and responding to comments on your posts will increase your blog’s interaction with visitors. You don’t have to respond to every single comment (unless you want to), but try to focus on those that are asking for your advice or offering a great suggestion. This will tell your readers that their opinions and questions matter, and make your blog feel more personal.

Share on Social Media

Lastly, posting your blog’s links on social media will help you interact with and keep readers. Create a Facebook fan page, a Twitter account, and a Pinterest page to start. You don’t have to share on social media constantly, but be sure to do it regularly to keep your followers aware of your new articles. Engage with readers who find your social media accounts using links back to your blog and vice-versa. You can also promote your contests and giveaways on social media to maximize engagement.

What other methods do you use to connect with readers of your business blog?

A Cincinnati native, Rebecca studied Art History & Geology at the University of Michigan. From there, she earned a degree in Fashion Design and Marketing from the American Intercontinental University in London, England. Highlights of her career include having several pieces from her graduation collection featured in the international fashion magazine i-D (UK, Feb. 2007) and working on menâs leather pouches for the movie Elizabeth: The Golden Age (which won an Oscar for Best Costume). Her brand "Purple and Lime" is a line of super-fun womenswear, jewelry, and accessories based in Chicago. She has been successfully selling her line on Etsy and in shops for four years, and enjoys teaching others about online handmade selling!